


His Reason to Panic

by NightwingsAngel



Series: His Reason... [11]
Category: Batman (Comics), Nightwing (Comics), Red Hood and the Outlaws (Comics)
Genre: Bat Family, Batfamily Feels, Brothers, Bruce is slightly out of character, Christmas, Christmas Presents, Explicit Language, Fluff and Angst, M/M, Patrol, Romance, daddy!Bats, robins
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-12
Updated: 2016-08-12
Packaged: 2018-08-08 08:45:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,491
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7750963
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NightwingsAngel/pseuds/NightwingsAngel
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jason and Dick are back together and Jason should be happy...he is happy, but after a conversation with Bruce he realizes he forgot something very important.</p>
            </blockquote>





	His Reason to Panic

**Author's Note:**

> This one is more fluff than angst :) They're back together now so not too much hurt will be happening, I hope.

Hot chocolate was a good idea. Hot chocolate was always a good idea. Especially when it was spiked with stolen whiskey from the family liquor cabinet. Alfred liked to pretend that the boys didn’t know what went into his secret adult hot chocolate recipe. In fact, Jason was sure the old butler liked to pretend that the boys didn’t even know an adult version of his famous hot chocolate existed. Truth was, Jason had figured out what was in Bruce’s mug years ago. Long before Red Hood even came along. He’d been a kid, a little bird, when he’d accidentally discovered Alfred pouring whiskey into Bruce’s hot chocolate. He’d wondered what it’d taste like, at the time, but he hadn’t actually tried it until he was much older.

 His first winter back in Gotham after rising from the grave, Jason had been missing the manor pretty bad, though he’d never admit it if anyone asked. He’d taken down a thug who’d had a flask of whiskey on him. The flask had been a little less than half full and Jason had debated on drinking it straight, but then he’d stumbled past a coffee shop. The shop’s hot chocolate was nowhere near the perfection that was Alfred’s, but with the whiskey in it he’d been able to convince himself he was merely drinking the bottom of the crockpot made hot chocolate. 

That had been some pretty shitty hot chocolate and he’d gone out shopping the next day to gather the ingredients to make Alfred’s recipe. He wished he was drinking that hot chocolate now…the good one…not the shitty one…but apparently the escape room hadn’t been enough ‘brotherly bonding time’, which it never really was any way considering it had all been a scheme created by Tim to get him and Dick back together.

Dick had decided to indulge their younger brothers by buying them hot chocolate even though the whole competition had been a set up. Which left Jason sitting in a brown booth, in a mostly glass building, with a paper cup of sub-par hot chocolate in front of him. He wanted to smoke. He wanted to go back to the manor and lock Dick in the screening room for the night. Well, maybe not the screening room. Maybe the main living room. The couches there were better and much more suited for cuddling than the stiff, straight backed chairs of the screening room.

Instead, Jason kept his gaze down. He was staring at the little snowman sticker the barista had put over the hole in his coffee lid. She’d been a pretty one and had batted her eyelashes at all three of the older brothers. Jason knew that beneath the cardboard ring around his coffee cup was scrawled her name and number, as it was also scrawled under the rings on both Dick and Tim’s cups. Damian hadn’t been given a number but had been given an enduring compliment that made him flustered. The look on the youngest bird’s face when the barista had called him a cute little man and said that she bet all the middle school girls were fawning over him, was priceless. Jason hadn’t even let Damian try to refute the lady’s assumption that he was in middle school. He’d clamped his hand over the boy’s mouth and pulled him in for a forced, over exaggerated hug, while saying, “That our little Dami! He’s going to be such a heart breaker when he’s old enough to date.”

He’d gotten a nasty set of teeth marks on his hand for that move, but It’d been worth it. Now Damian sat across from him, scowling down at his own coffee while Tim and Dick chittered beside them. The two hadn’t stopped talking since they sat down and oh had they been smart when they’d chosen the booth. It was wedged in a corner and they’d gotten both Damian and Jason to sit by the wall, effectively blocking them in and preventing them from escaping the coffee shop unless they really wanted to climb over the table.

Jason figured it really didn’t matter though. It wasn’t like he wanted to leave. Damian might, but he was actually okay. As much as he wanted to be back at the manor or on his way to buy a new pack of cigarettes, he was fine in the booth. Why? Because Dick was sitting right next to him and every once in a while the older bird’s hand would slip beneath the table and grab Jason’s. A couple times Dick’s fingers had grazed Jason’s thigh. The red bird wasn’t convinced the graze had been an accident, though Dick had apologized for it the first time it occurred.

About thirty minutes into their little coffee adventure, as Dick and Tim still chittered away, a small ding sounded from Damian’s end of the booth. The boy tried to be nonchalant as he retrieved his phone but Jason noted the minute trace of hast in his movements. When a small, barely noticeable smile –which was more of a positive twitch of his lips –showed up on Damian’s face, Jason couldn’t stop himself from asking.

“Is that the girl I’ve been hearing so much about?”

Instantly Damian had the attention of all three of his brothers. Dick was wearing a face splitting grin and Tim was smirking as he raised his coffee cup to his lips.

“Aww, little D is texting his crush,” Dick teased. “So adorable.”

“Shut up, Grayson!” Damian shot back and Jason wondered if the kid realized that he’d pulled his phone to his chest as if he were protecting it from prying eyes.

“She’s a cute one,” Tim chimed in and ended up coughing as he was promptly elbowed by Damian. “What? I didn’t say anything damaging! Why are you always so violent?”

“Tt,” Damian stated. “You deserve it.”

“Come on, baby bat,” Jason sneered, hoping to draw out Damian’s reaction. “At least give up a few details. Fuck I never even thought you’d have a crush let alone that a girl would actually, willingly text you….she is doing it willingly, right? You’re not black mailing her?”

“Fuck you, Todd!”

Jason snickered.

Dick scowled, “Damian, watch your language.”

“The fact that you let Todd curse and not me is a double standard.”

“No, it’s a right earned with maturity.”

“No, it’s because you don’t want father to be angered that you let me use such words.”

“Who the fuck cares?” Jason interrupted, “Because I sure don’t and Baby bird sure doesn’t. What I want to know is who this girl is.”

“Her name’s….”

“Drake, I swear I will murder you if you tell him a single thing more,” Damian interrupted Tim.

“Okay, okay, chill,” Tim was smirking as he spoke. “I won’t tell them anything.”

“You’re no fun,” Jason frowned.

“Sorry,” Tim shrugged. “A promise is a promise and he made me swear on my parents’ graves not to tell a single soul who she is when he told me. It was the only way I could get him to admit his feelings.”

Damian growled.

“And I think that’s our cue that brotherly bonding time is over,” Dick stated as he watched Damian’s face turn red.

Damian muttered something in Arabic as the four of them got up from the booth. Jason, Damian, and Dick all deposited their empty cups in the trashcan on their way out of the coffee shop. Tim, however, kept his. He was nursing his drink slowly and he let it sit in the cup holder of his car as he started the vehicle.

“Yo, Timbers? Stop at a station on the way back, will ya? I need to pick up another pack of smokes,” Jason requested. Out of the corner of his eye he saw the down turning of Dick’s lips and he knew that Damian was probably rolling his eyes from his seat up front, but he chose to focus on Tim’s nod instead of the other two’s obvious displeasure over his request.

“One would think that you would take more care of your body since you’ve known death,” Damian stated. So much for ignoring him and Dick and focusing on Tim’s acceptance. “I saw a video of a scientist testing the effect cigarettes have on the human body and after only twenty of them the lungs they were using for the test were completely black inside. How are you still breathing? Your lungs have to be charcoal by now.”

Jason opened his mouth to tell Damian the same thing he told Bruce every time the man thought he’d lecture his second son on the hazards of smoking, but to his surprise he didn’t manage to get the two word sentence out before Dick rose to defense.

“Jason’s a grown man. He can do what he wants, Damian,” Dick chided.

“I am aware. I was merely stating that…”

“Damian,” the tone in which Dick said the name of the youngest was so close to the tone Batman used on patrol that it had all three of the other birds straightening their posture.

Damian didn’t speak again and Dick relaxed back against the seat. Tim was snickering and if the disgruntled sound Damian made was anything to go by then Tim was also muttering teases beneath his breath. Jason, however, didn’t care about the two in the front seat or whether or not Tim was about to start an argument by taunting a chided Damian. He was too busy realizing that Dick, who hated smoking and had tried to convince him to quit several times in the past, had just come to his defense and fought for Jason’s right to do whatever the fuck he wanted.

Tim pulled into the first gas station they came upon. He didn’t say anything as he parked to let Jason out, but Damian did.

“E-cigarettes. That’s all I’m saying!” Damian exclaimed and then made a very undignified, wounded animal-like sound as Dick kicked the back of his seat…hard.

Jason didn’t stick around to witness the rest of the argument that he was sure took place. Instead he quickly made his way to the gas station checkout and requested two packs of his favorite cigarettes and a new lighter. After paying for them, he stuffed them into his jacket pocket and walked back out into the cold air. It was barely noon but the sky was as dark as the evening with the snow clouds hanging from it. He jammed his hands into the pockets of his jeans as he walked to Tim’s car. When he entered the vehicle he was surprised to find it deathly silent.

“You ready?” Tim smiled at him through the rear view mirror.

Jason raised a brow. “Yeah…what’s with the silence?”

“Damian’s pouting and Dick’s brooding.”

“I’m not brooding.”

“I’m not pouting.”

Tim rolled his eyes. “Whatever you say.”

Jason spared a look at Dick, noticing how tired the other man seemed to appear. There was a slight frown to his lips and the dark lines Jason had noticed beneath his eyes in the escape room were still present. He made a mental note to make sure Dick slept that night. As he reached over to grab Dick’s hand and intertwine their fingers together, he was already planning on just how he’d make sure the older man slept.

He thought that maybe he could convince Dick to take the night off patrol and go to bed early, but when he suggested it Dick had stated, “I’ve patrolled on less sleep than this, little wing. I’ll be fine.”

So Jason took his case to Bruce.

“B, Wing needs to sleep. You said he was a liability anyway. Why not give him the night off?” Jason had spoke softly to Bruce as the patriarch readied himself for patrol. The other birds were meandering around the cave, putting on their gauntlets, lacing their boots, making sure they had an ample supply of bird-a-rangs and smoke pellets, and over all just preparing for patrol.

Bruce had actually contemplated his second son’s words before he called out loud enough for all the other birds to hear, “Jason, suit up. You’re on patrol tonight.”

“Alright!” Nightwing grinned. “I call being his patrol partner!”

                Bruce shook his head. “Nightwing, you’re on computer tonight.”

                Instantly Dick’s grin was gone. “What?”

                “What?” Jason agreed. He thought he’d made it clear that Dick needed to sleep.

                “Oracle is with her family,” Bruce pulled his cowl on, “and it is not fair to ask Alfred to monitor the computer when he is already busy preparing for Christmas. Nightwing, you are on computer detail.”

                “Is this because I’m a liability?” Dick spoke through clenched teeth. “I’ve had a couple off nights but I can still do my job.”

                “What you’ve had is a couple of off _months_ ,” Bruce corrected. “You’re on computer detail and that is final.”

                Dick stomped away to the computer. He violently ripped off his domino mask and slipped on the computer headset.

                “He needs to sleep,” Jason hissed as he walked past Bruce.

                Bruce caught his wrist, effectively stopping him from approaching his gear. “He will. Criminal activity has been low. There is a storm coming in so I doubt much will occur tonight. He is going to get bored and when he gets bored he’ll…”

                “Fall asleep at the computer,” Jason finished the thought.

                Bruce nodded and let go of Jason. “Despite what you may think, I do know all four of you boys as well as I know myself. And I know that sending Dick to his room will not work. He’d be up and on patrol if I didn’t give him a task that required him stay in the cave.”

                Jason gave a curt nod and went to put his gear on. Batman and Robin took off while he was still suiting up and Red Robin headed out as Jason grabbed his helmet. Before he left, however, he swung by the computer and dropped a quick kiss on Dick’s mouth.

                When the blue bird’s lips responded eagerly to his Jason didn’t want to pull away. He wanted to pull Dick up from the chair and to one of their rooms, but he had patrol to go on and with their history they should really think about taking things slower this time. They weren’t just fuck buddies this time around. They were two people with feelings for the other that the other was aware of. It made the whole ordeal more intimate and a little bit more intimidating.

                “I’ll be back in a couple hours,” Jason breathed against Dick’s mouth. “Maybe, if you’re lucky, we’ll share a bed tonight.”

                Dick hummed, “That’d be nice. I’ve missed you.”

                Jason didn’t return the sentiment though he did offered the other man a smirk before leaving another kiss on Dick’s lips. Dick whined a little bit when Jason pulled away to put his helmet on.

                “When I get back, babe,” Jason promised before moving towards his bike. He was already behind the others and if he stayed any longer he wouldn’t be leaving the cave at all. Then Bruce would have his hide for ditching them.

                Patrol was as quiet as Bruce predicted. Jason had taken down a couple of petty thefts trying to hot-wire a car and stopped an ally mugging, but other than that nothing exciting happened. He’d even stopped by Penguin’s lounge, hopping for some trouble, but what he found was a holiday decked out place and a bunch of jolly criminals who seemed content to ride out the forecasted storm within the walls of the Iceberg Lounge.

                “It’s quiet tonight,” Red Robin’s voice sounded in Jason’s ear as he watched the line outside of Penguin’s lounge get shorter as people were allowed entrance. He was on a nearby roof, leaning against some piping when the other red bird’s voice interrupted his thoughts.

                “Think B would let us off early?” Jason inquired.

                “He let Nightwing and I off early last night,” Tim reminded. “There’s a chance. Have you heard from Nightwing recently?”

                “No. Not for an hour. He told me there was absolutely nothing on the scanners.”

                “Same here. We should check in with B.”

                “Red Hood to Batman, You hear us?”

                “I hear you,” Bruce’s voice came over the com line.

                “Where’s all the bad guys?” Tim questioned lightheartedly.

                “They’re over here with me at the Iceberg Lounge,” Jason stated. “They’re all drunk off their asses and singing shitty Christmas songs.”

                “Penguin must be serving some pretty good eggnog,” Tim remarked.

                “Todd, are you drinking with the villains?” Damian’s voice was scandalized.

                “Pst, I have better company to drink with, short stack,” Jason responded.

                “Was there a report by the lounge?” Bruce inquired.

                “Nah. I was just bored and thought I’d survey the joint. Waste of time. Nothing’s happened.”

                “The snow’s starting to pick up and the temperature has dropped twenty-five degrees since we left the cave,” Bruce stated. “It’s time to call it a night. Everyone back to the cave.”

                “I hope A has some of his hot chocolate ready when we get back,” Tim said.

                “Mmmm,” Jason hummed in agreement. “Maybe we can get some of the adult kind this year.”

                “Huh?” Damian questioned.

                “You’re delusional,” Jason and Tim could both hear the smirk in Bruce’s voice.

                Tim and Jason chatted through the com line on the way back to the cave and when Jason arrived he found Damian and Tim heading towards the showers and Bruce putting away his suit, his back to Jason.

                “I told you he’d fall asleep,” Bruce said without even turning around to look at his second robin.

                Jason smiled beneath his helmet. Nightwing was indeed passed out in the computer chair. A little bit of drool was dribbling down his cheek and his head was propped up on his hand at an odd angle that Jason was sure would leave an ache in his wrist.

                “Damian told me you and he have worked everything out,” Bruce continued to speak.

                Jason shrugged. “I don’t know about everything but we’ve worked out enough, I guess.”

                “Good.  You made it hard to shop for him this Christmas.”

                “Huh?” gloved fingers worked at the latches on a red helmet.

                “Every time someone asked him what he wanted he’d said he wanted you home. I ended up getting him an espresso machine because Damian stated that the one at his apartment was unfit to be used.”

                “Shit,” Jason muttered as a shot of panic ran through him. Bruce’s remark made him remember the gifts he had wrapped and sitting upstairs in his bedroom closet. The gifts that were for everyone but Dick.

                Bruce’s dark brows raised a bit. “Excuse me?”

                “I forgot about Dick’s gift,” Jason hissed quietly, not wanting to wake Dick up and have him hear their conversation.

                “You forgot?”

                “Maybe it was intentional, but I was pissed at the time,” Jason admitted. “Shit. Fuck. I have three days to get him a gift. What the hell am I going to do?”

                “Jason, language,” Bruce stated. “You need to relax. You’ve already gotten him the one thing he wanted. Like I said, he told everyone that what he wanted for Christmas was to have you home.”

                “That’s a shitty gift,” Jason responded. “I’ve got to get him something else. Do you know what the others got him?”

                Bruce shook his head. “Only Damian. Who’s giving him a picture he drew.”

                Jason groaned. “Maybe I can talk Baby bird into shopping with me tomorrow. Or Alfred. Alfred’s always been great at picking out gifts.”

                “With the storm that’s coming in you might not be able to go shopping tomorrow,” Bruce reminded.

                “Shit. I forgot about that.”

                Bruce sighed. “Language.”

                “No,” Jason responded. “Shit. Fuck. Shitty, fuckity, fuck, fuck.”

                Dick stirred as Jason’s voice grew in volume.

                “Jay?” blue eyes blinked blurrily. “What’s with all the cursing? Are you alright?”

                “I’m fine,” Jason hung his helmet on his bike before going over to his boyfriend. Bruce didn’t say anything, or stick around, he slipped away into the shadows like only Batman could. “I didn’t mean to wake you.”

                Dick blinked again. He looked between the computer and Jason. “Did I fall asleep?”

                Jason nodded with a smile. “Yeah, babe.”

                “Damn,” Dick groaned. “Bruce must be pissed.”

                “Nah. He’s cool with it. He expected it.”

                “What?”

                “We could all tell you were tired. You still look tired.”

                “I am, but someone promised that if I did computer detail I wouldn’t have to sleep alone tonight.”

                Jason grinned and swept down to give Dick a kiss. “I think that someone can keep their promise.”

                As he and Dick made their way up to Dick’s room, Jason kept one arm around his boyfriend’s shoulders and his thoughts on the gift he’d neglected to purchase. He didn’t care what Bruce said, he had to get Dick something.


End file.
